Reader disgusted with county's 'small-town politics'

From my current home in Seattle I have been watching this Moffat County drama unfold.

When I left Moffat County last summer, after being ignored and belittled by Marianna Raftopoulos at two separate county meetings, I was thoroughly discussed with Moffat County and its small town politics. It appears now that I am not the only one who has problems with her manipulation of county departments for the benefit of a select few.

I had to laugh when I read the latest article where she claims to be only trying to serve the public. The amount of time and energy that she put into trying to protect a friend who attempted to build a five-story structure without a building permit, a clear title to the land, or any of the normally required reviews and zoning permits, was almost comical.

You may recall an article the Craig Daily Press published last summer about union cellular being granted a special use permit for a cell phone tower that was half complete by the time they were discovered building without permits. In a normal situation, the project would have been cited, building stopped until proper engineering drawings were submitted and reviewed, inspections performed and clear title to the property determined.

Under complete domination of the building department by Marianna Raftopoulos, the project was never stopped, engineering drawings were never submitted or reviewed, property line surveys were never registered at the county courthouse and no fines were issued.

I am now faced with the prospect of expensive civil litigation because of the encroachment of this tower on my property. While the county's liability in this situation is yet to be determined, its involvement, defending the actions of Marianna Raftopoulos, is inevitable.

To the average county taxpayer, who dutifully procures a building permit to install a new toilet or place concrete blocks under his or her trailer, this two-tiered system of building code enforcement must be difficult to except.

I hope that the citizens who do live, and vote, in Moffat County will take a close look at the way their county is being run.